Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe (24) congratulates Ben Revere (11), who scored on a hit by Josh Willingham in the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas on Sunday, August 26, 2012. Revere was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, Dec. 6. (Richard W. Rodriguez/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As general manager, Terry Ryan saw that the Twins’ only way forward from two last-place seasons was with better pitching. The starting rotation had the second-worst earned-run average in baseball last season, the farm system had been depleted of promising prospects, and the chances of competing appeared bleak, no matter how many solid position players the team had.

So Ryan arrived at the winter meetings focused on adding pitchers. And on the final day of the proceedings, after some general managers already had left town, Ryan saved his boldest move for last.

He traded center fielder Ben Revere to the Philadelphia Phillies for right-handers Vance Worley and Trevor May on Thursday, Dec. 6, adding a two-year major league starter and a hard-throwing prospect at the expense of the first two hitters from last season’s batting order.

The deal came just six days after Ryan shipped center fielder and leadoff hitter Denard Span to the Washington Nationals for right-hander Alex Meyer, and Revere was set to move from right field and take over for Span in center. Now that Revere is gone, the Twins have two spots in their outfield up for grabs.

“The only way we were going to get pitching was to make a little bit of a drastic move, whether or not you want to say it’s drastic,” Ryan said. “It is a risk. I understand that. But to get pitching, you’re going to have to do something. You can say the same thing about the trade for Denard. The risk is on the front office. This is another one, but we’re willing to take it.”

Worley, 25, finished third in the 2011 National League rookie of the year race after going 11-3 with a 3.01 earned-run average for the Phillies. He made 21 starts that season, cracking a rotation that included Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt. He had a 4.20 ERA last season but pitched much of the season with bone chips in his elbow until having surgery in September.

Worley will join Scott Diamond as the two surest things in an otherwise uncertain rotation.

May, 23, was the Phillies’ 2011 minor league pitcher of the year and was ranked as the second-best prospect in the organization by MLB.com. His fastball sits in the low to mid-90s, and he adds a slider, changeup and curveball, assistant general manager Rob Antony said. May struck out 151 batters in 149 2/3 innings for Class AA Reading last season.

What’s more, both pitchers are young and under club control, which means the Twins have money left to fill out their rotation with veteran starting pitchers. They have made contract offers to multiple free agents and have two open spots on their 40-man roster.

If the Twins can partner Diamond and Worley with a veteran starter or two — such as Milwaukee’s’ Shaun Marcum, Oakland’s Brandon McCarthy, Baltimore’s Joe Saunders and/or Washington’s John Lannan — then May, Kyle Gibson, Liam Hendriks, Cole De Vries and others could vie for the final rotation spot or two.

Though Thursday’s trade improves the Twins’ biggest weakness, it tears a hole in the middle of the outfield. Ryan said the Twins don’t plan to get in the running for an expensive center fielder such as Atlanta’s Michael Bourn, which means reserve outfielder Darin Mastroianni could compete for playing time with prospects Aaron Hicks and Joe Benson. The Twins plan to give Chris Parmelee a chance to win the right-field job.

The infield isn’t exactly settled, either. The Twins are sorting through a number of options at shortstop and second base and were looking for a third baseman to compete with Trevor Plouffe, who hit 24 home runs last season but struggled with a bruised thumb during the second half.

That means the Twins could have as many as five spots in their defense unsettled, including three in the middle of the diamond.

But none of those risks, to Ryan, was as dangerous as going into another season without improving the rotation.

“I don’t think we’re taking steps back. We’re trying to take steps forward,” Ryan said. “I would understand if somebody did equate it into taking a step back. We aren’t going to take a step forward until we get any pitching.”

As you comment, please be respectful of other commenters and other viewpoints. Our goal with article comments is to provide a space for civil, informative and constructive conversations. We reserve the right to remove any comment we deem to be defamatory, rude, insulting to others, hateful, off-topic or reckless to the community. See our full terms of use here.

More in Sports

The Vikings reportedly will open next season where the last one ended in bitter disappointment. Minnesota will play at Philadelphia in the NFL opener on Thursday, Sept. 6, according to report Monday by sportscaster Howard Eskin, an Eagles sideline reporter. The Vikings lost 38-7 at Philadelphia in January's NFC Championship Game. The Eagles went on to win Super Bowl LII...

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Twins second baseman Brian Dozier always makes an effort to bond with his keystone partner at shortstop. Since the second half of 2016, that has been young Jorge Polanco. So it was with great sadness that Dozier was forced to react Monday morning to news of Polanco’s 80-game steroid suspension, handed down on Sunday by Major...

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Twins third baseman Miguel Sano has known Jorge Polanco since they were 12-year-old baseball prodigies in the famed town of San Pedro de Macoris in the Dominican Republic. So it was an emotional conversation on Sunday evening between the two teammates, friends for half their young lives, after Major League Baseball announced an 80-game steroid suspension...

EUGENE, Ore. — Sabrina Ionescu had 29 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and the second-seeded Oregon Ducks advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 101-73 victory over No. 10 Minnesota in the second round of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament on Sunday night. It was the 11th straight victory for the Ducks, who are headed to the round of...

Since signing with the Timberwolves, Derrick Rose has insisted he still has something left in his 29-year-old legs. He proved as much Sunday night. After three underwhelming showings with the Wolves, Rose provided a spark for Minnesota during a 129-120 loss to Houston at Target Center. "Obviously, he's rejuvenated," Jimmy Butler said before the game. "I see him out there...

One word succinctly describes what’s transpired so far in the NCAA Tournament: Madness. But even that’s probably underselling it. A comeback for the ages by Nevada. An entire region left without a Top 4 seed in the Sweet 16 for the first time in tourney history. The 16-seed winner UMBC, falling short in its attempt to extend its historic run...